Longqi

Lóngqí (龍崎), officially romanized as Longci, is a remote rural district in eastern Tainan characterized by badlands topography with nutrient-poor, erosion-prone mudstone soils unsuitable for most agriculture. With a population of approximately 3,600 residents, it is the smallest district in Tainan by population, having experienced severe decline from a peak of 9,175 in 1969 as younger residents migrated to neighboring areas with better employment opportunities. The challenging soil conditions have historically limited cultivation to Bambusa blumeana, or thorny bamboo (刺竹), which thrives in the alkaline environment, spurning the development of a bamboo charcoal industry.